We Will Be Here Only For Our Captain
by YukiUruha
Summary: Luffy is so accustomed to helping and caring for his Nakamas, that he forgets that they can do it for him sometimes as well. Or When a vice admiral prepares a trap for the straw hats and Luffy gets hurt, it's up to his nakamas to save his captain and they will not fail again.
1. Cat Burglar Plan

"Sanji ... Food!"

Incredibly that phrase was not said by the always hungry captain, but by the sniper stretched out on Sunny's grassy lawn, the strong sun of that area of the new world leaving them all in their bathing suits, or the coolest they could find at that moment , Nami had told a few hours that it would not take long for the weather to change again but they could not just wait for it since the time of that sea was completely unpredictable so they would have to wait patiently for the weak wind that afternoon takes them away .

"Not yet, we're rationing, remember?" That call snapped back at the sniper, watching him moan dramatically and wrapping himself in a ball on the grass for only a few seconds, it was too hot for him to look like that. "Be useful and try to catch some fish for dinner! The only thing I can do is juice, and if mine wanted Nami-san to humbly allow me to pick up some of her precious mandarins, I can make some snacks." Sanji said looking at the navigator who nodded without question, also wanting something to stop the hunger.

"You know why I can't fish! That damn sea king does not let any fish get close to the ship!" Usopp complained loudly, waving his arms and legs in the air comically, stopping when it overheated his body and he let his limbs fall heavily on the deck, his tongue falling dramatically out of his mouth, panting like a thirsty dog. "Ah ... So hungry ..."

"Do not be a baby about it, Usopp!" Sanji replied angrily, he would never admit it, but it was destroying him gradually to see his hungry friends, he could do nothing to prevent it and he knew it, but it did not hurt less. "See, not even Luffy is complaining like you!"

And indeed, the captain, from the time they began rationing, more than a week ago, he was no longer complaining about the hunger for the cook, and that was so out of character in the first two days that even the others noticed, but when the hunger was much stronger than they trying to notice the strangeness of their captain, they left there. At least seven of them left.

Sanji simply could not ignore this fact, not he who was constantly pestered by the captain who claimed to be hungry every five minutes, to have him ignoring his kitchen more than a week and not even complaining of hunger at all, it was unnerving it's worrying. Luffy was currently sitting on the lion's figure, the Thousand Sunny, and it was where he spent most of his time now, hoping to catch sight of some island, or trying to fish with Usopp and Chopper when they had the energy to do so.

With the words of the cook Zoro and Chopper looked at the captain, they had realized how the lack of food had hit the rubber boy much more, even more with all the chase that had lasted for more than a week as well. The Navy looked like a dog behind their hunt, they could not get away from the ships that had been chasing them for so many days, the fights were constant, and with the lack of food supplies on their bodies, fatigue and damage only accumulated.

Luffy would not give too many hints of his bad form if he were not so physically perceptible, no one outside would notice seeing how weak the captain even tried to act like his normal self by playing with the younger ones, talking to Nami, or listening for more than a few minutes of the stories Robin liked to tell him about his books, asking Brook to play something to encourage him or join Franky and watch his new inventions. The only two things that changed were the lack of accompaniment to the swordsman in his training, he told Zoro that it was annoying, but the first mate knew that he only wanted to save his energies if they had to fight again soon; and Sanji, the Cook almost felt lonely not having the ever demanding captain ordering food in his kitchen, Sanji had already asked him why he was not bothering him anymore, and Luffy replied tediously that no matter how much he asked, Sanji would not give him anything; Sanji only knew that Luffy understood how frightening he was so he could not feed him when he asked.

And that was exactly what bothered him at the moment. Two years later, Luffy would just kick the fuck and chase him down the deck like a street fella asking for food, so oblivious to the feelings of others that Sanji would take it to the point where he would feel more upset than sorry about him. boy. Now, however, seeing him really care about his feelings did not give him a distracting rift.

Everyone knew that the lack of food was affecting the captain more than they did, after all Chopper had already explained that Luffy's modified body spent two, if not three times more energy than the others even on a normal day, and this only triplicated if he abused even if it was some of his powers, a second gear even if for a few seconds he could consume the energy for half a day. And in the last days they just could not stop fighting, unable to recharge their energies with good food only enervated everyone even more.

The most obvious thing about Luffy's physical change was the coloring of his skin, normally being a healthier, browner skin was now no shadow of it, a pale sickly Luffy covered from head to toe, his eyes a little deep had some dark circles and his lips were starting to crack with dehydration again - the only thing Sanji was managing to control even if a little - fortunately there were still several barrels of water and wine left, so he was always preparing juices and beating to offer everyone and try to cheat stomach until mealtime. Still he knew it was not enough for Luffy, he was more visible with each passing day, seeing as his wrist grew thinner, and his muscles slowly slowed to a thinness that did not match his captain who, since he'd met, carried the obligation to keep healthy with your food.

He was the cook of the bunch of straw hats, damn it! His first duty should be to keep his crew well fed, just a little over a month together and he was already letting his friends starve. It was unacceptable! Brook even offered to lose his meals, saying that no matter how delicious they were, he had no strict obligation to eat since he did not have a stomach to fill - Sanji meant that he also had no tongue to taste the food, but he stopped, he was too evil. - but Luffy denied saying that he had already spent too much time without eating for him to avoid it when he could do it, no matter how small the food.

 _"Just because you do not have to eat does not mean you should not. No sacrifices on that ship."_

It was Luffy's final word and, hell, Sanji could not be prouder of his captain. Brook only asked that his quantity be reduced instead and reluctantly Luffy accepted.

"Luffy, come and get your juice." Sanji called, another thing that was not his fault, since he never really needed to call the captain to eat anything, when he least expected it, the teenager would be there picking up something hidden to eat while he was preparing the food or demanding some meal. He never really cared to do all the dishes Luffy asked for, but he would never reveal that either.

"Oh! Thank you Sanji!" Luffy exclaimed excitedly, but it was recognizable in his voice how tired he was. Sanji bit his cigarette before tossing it off the side grille of Sunny, squinting at the sea monster that tormented them on the surface. They could not even tell why the sea monster was following them, and that was the most annoying thing about the situation.

It was a brindle specimen of a flashy violet with red, the beast was obviously poisonous, he even looked in his encyclopedia to be sure and said that even the water around him was a bit contaminated and that was why no fish was approaching , Sanji would never let such an animal get near his kitchen. Luffy already wanted to try to catch him to satisfy his hunger, but Sanji stopped him saying what he was suspicious.

 _"But I'm practically immune to poison!" He countered with the cook stamping his foot on the deck._

 _"And I do not want to know how you got this way, but I will not let you die for eating a spoiled fish on my watch." Sanji fought, kicking the top of the captain's head without much force and he finally left, pouting for the rest of the day as he watched the damned animal swim from side to side._

"I'll prepare dinner early today, just wait a little longer." Sanji spoke a little louder and a chorus of tired congratulations were delivered to him - _yay!; you are the best!; huuungry_ ... Luffy smiled broadly, practically pouring the drink into his throat, Sanji said he could have one more and he willingly accepted, thanking the cook and smiling. _Damn, when did he learn to thank_?

"Luffy, drink some more water, you're very dehydrated." Chopper spoke faintly of his place in the arms of Robin, the archaeologist used a fan to fan the air to the reindeer that could not handle so well with the heat even after all those years exposed to him.

"Okaaay..." The captain nodded in dismay as he dragged himself into the kitchen, pausing at the sound of Brook's voice from the raven's nest.

"The marines are back! His voice was a little frightened, leaving Luffy on alert. -There are 3 ships at 6 o'clock!

Luffy ran to the stern with Zoro and Sanji at his back, leaning on the railing and squinting to see the ships in the distance.

"Let's get close and destroy those damn ships at once." Sanji suggested, seeing Luffy and Zoro still staring at the navy galleons, Luffy just looked away as he felt Nami behind him.

"I had a better idea. His mischievous smile made Luffy smile animatedly and Sanji almost melted with love once again by the beautiful navigator as he sang to the world how beautiful and perfect she was when she had an idea. Zoro called him an idiot and soon they were fighting.

* * *

It was difficult to make a fog so thick and thick that it covered not only Sunny but the other navy ships as well, but Nami managed to finish it by feeling proud of herself, calling everyone to the middle of the deck and explaining again what they would have to do.

"We have to split up into three groups, I do not like to leave Sunny alone, so a person will have to stay." Nami stared at Luffy for a moment, then looked away, handing large sacks to Robin, Zoro, and Sanji. "Our only purpose is to steal food, we can not get attention or we'll be surrounded, we're glued enough to use a single coup de burst, the rest of the stock we have is what Franky uses to stay functional.

"And how are we going to split Nami-chan?" Robin asked gently, accepting the navigator's idea.

"You're going to stay on the ship, Franky, your body is very large and will draw much attention."

-AW! Ok sis, it's good that I prepare the Sunny for our SU~PER match!" The cyborg pointed to his characteristic pose.

"Quiet!" Nami scolded, they could not catch the Marines' attention now or they would not be able to make a stealthy infiltration as initially thought to do. "Robin and Brook will steal the first ship, Zoro, Usopp and I will go to the second, then Sanji-kun, Luffy and Chopper will go to the third. We will not have much time, without me to keep the fog it will dissipate in half an hour at most, we must finish stealing before this without drawing attention." Nami said looking at everyone, beating his clima tact on the floor as if announcing the end of his speech.

"Right! You have listened to Nami personally, without drawing attention!" Luffy said putting his hands on his waist and looking at them severely.

"We do not want to hear that from you, idiot!" Usopp complained, slapping the head of the captain who laughed quietly, losing his pose.

"Nami." Zoro called low, shaking his head away as he walked in the same direction, watching the redhead approach. "I do not think it's a good idea to let Luffy join this infiltration, he's ... not well." It was painful to point that out, but it was a fact, the captain could barely walk straight without stumbling.

"I did not want him to go either, but no matter what I say, he's going anyway, and you know it." Nami sighed, disconnecting her tact mood to guard it properly. "He's still our captain and we have no right to stop him from doing anything."

"I know ..." Zoro sighed, looking at the group in the distance and seeing Usopp arguing with Luffy about ninja tactics that they could use to draw attention, making strange symbols with their hands and speaking 'nin' 'nin' in the At the end of each sentence, Chopper accompanied them in amazement at the idea. "I know, but I still do not like it. Is that the reason you put the cook with him? Usually you separate three nodes."

"Did you notice?" She asked innocently, blinking her big brown eyes and Zoro moaned in annoyance. Nami laughed. "My bad. Anyway, Sanji can fly, you know, so in case something happens he can get Luffy out of there, Chopper is also going to take care of him if he finally collapses."

"I know, but it will not calm me down."

"Not me, but we have no other choice."

* * *

The groups separated and all ready for infiltration, it was only necessary to choose the ship where it went. The first one who passed by the Sunny Robin bridged his powers and she along with Brook crossed without any problems while Franky waved the little hand that came out of his big hand in a bye to his crew friends, the second on the other side of the ship, had a pop green exploding forming a large tangle of branches a solid passage, letting the sniper, navigator and swordsman pass to complete their mission. Finally, there was Sanji, the captain under one arm - _"Why can not I just stretch out there?" "Because you're going to get attention, then shut up and enjoy the ride." "Okay ..."_ \- and the reindeer of the other as he kicked the air toward the last ship, starting the mission.

Robin would never settle for how ridiculously easy it was to infiltrate a marine ship or a marine base if she were to think about it. His memories wandered to two years ago, his captain invading Marineford after the war only to warn them of his decision, smiling weakly at it.

"Robin-san, this is my first time invading a marine ship of my own accord, do you have any idea where they could keep the supplies?" Brook asked quietly next to the brunette, watching her wave and run to hide when she heard footsteps in his direction, Brook right behind her was silent to follow her.

"Yes, all ships are basically the same, the room that holds the groceries is next to the refectory and is near the stern of the ship, we're at the bow so we have to go there first."

"Then I recommend we go outside, less likely to meet some marine on our way out of the fog." Brook suggested seeing her friend smile and nod, motioning for him to follow her as she followed as far as the stern of the great galleon as quietly as possible.

* * *

Nami next to Usopp and Zoro hid behind a few boxes when they heard hurried footsteps in the direction they were before, holding their breaths to make as little sound as possible, hoping they could do everything as silently as possible and without drawing attention, yet each had a hand in his own weapon, waiting for the Marines to depart.

"They are gone." Usopp whispered when they were finally alone again, sighing wearily. They needed this food as fast as possible.

"Oi, those boxes could not be supplies, could they?" Zoro asked casually, his voice calm as usual, his only eye turning his gaze from the redhead to the sharpshooter and then to the large crate they had previously hidden, on their sides had the KK inscriptions.

"Not likely, but it's easy to be sure. Cut off the cover, and try not to make any noise." Nami suggested and Zoro snorted, his cuts were always silent, he did not need someone to tell him to do this. The left hand made his way to Wado and moved his feet slightly to keep his balance, Nami and Usopp saw only to uncork him, the cut was so fast that it was impossible to see what Zoro had done, besides the only sound heard by both was the sword entering his scabbard again. Zoro did not even look away as he pushed the heavy wooden cover like a sheet of paper.

"Cannon balls and ammunition for marines' weapons. Zoro questioned everyone quickly, his good eye seeing with some disgust how well prepared those people were to kill them, taking some bullets in his hand and pouring them into the sea in anger.

"We have nothing to do here then, it would help us if we could get rid of all this, but it would draw a lot of attention." Nami said looking at all the ammunition boxes around her with the same inscription, there were at least ten. They did not have time for it, they needed food.

"Let's go outside and use the fog in our favor until we reach the stern, the pantry of most of the marine vessels is located there." Usopp said getting a nod from Nami and Zoro. The sniper looked around and saw that there was no more Marines nearby so he left the hiding place, motioning for Nami and Zoro to follow him, soon to hide as more footsteps came in his direction. When they moved away again he turned to say that they could continue when he felt his blood freeze with the lack of a green head.

* * *

Sanji lowered Luffy and Chopper to the deck more gently than he would normally demonstrate to anyone other than a woman, Luffy was not blind, naive and silly most of the time, but not blind, and he thanked her mentally for the care of his cook with him and his already weak friend.

It was harder than he expected it would be to stand up as weak as he was without enough food in his system. He knew that Sanji did the best he could with the little left over, he also knew that in the only meal of the day he would receive a little more rice and fish - the few left in the aquarium - on his plate, but still was not enough to keep him twenty-four hours, having to constantly fight against the Marines who pursued them was even worse.

He was exhausted and hungry, he even managed to train his stomach not to grumble so much in the last few days not to disturb Sanji, he could tell that the cook knew very well what he was going through, he did not want to make him uncomfortable asking for the food which they did not have, then decided to wait in silence.

"Let's do it fast." Sanji said and Chopper nodded, Luffy trying to sniff the air.

"I can not smell food." The captain spoke in disappointment, the fog was a little messy with his nose, the stench of the sea made him even more tired and all he wanted to do was fall into his bunk and wake up from that nightmare. He endured the urge to moan bored with the effect of the haze on him, Chopper was also a user of fruit like him and was very well, considering the fact that his beacon was much better than his.

"But I can." Chopper warned excitedly. "Besides the smell of gunpowder, I can smell food coming from behind the ship." Sanji took a cigarette and took it to his mouth, not rising because the glare could catch the eye, just having it there on his lips was already a great relief.

"Then let us follow your nose." Sanji said, hiding a hand in the pocket of his pants. He knew that was not the best option, nor the best plan, but damn it, he had a whole crew hungry, a captain almost fainting from malnutrition and much anger and frustration kept. They would steal that food even if he had to bring down every Marine on his way to it.

"Are you sure?" Chopper asked, unable to avoid his concern, but he could not look at the weakened captain. His real desire was to leave him on the ship with Franky, perhaps to have him lie down in the infirmary to rest a little after some vitamins while eating that promised Sanji dessert, but he knew that Luffy would never accept such a thing, Luffy would never be far from the action if he could join her, however weakened he might be. His captain loved to fight.

"Yes, just be a little more careful." Sanji said looking at Luffy, seeing him smile widely and let out that childish giggle that could disarm many, he could not fail with his captain, not if he could do something about it.

He had a bad feeling, though, and tried to use his haki to see if anyone was around, not noticing anyone he waved at Chopper and the little reindeer led them slowly across the deck, all having to hide behind large crates when a small patrol passed through them.

"Captain Benyan was talking to Vice Admiral Arata about den den mushi this morning." One of the Marines spoke seriously to his partner.

"Naturally, he has to report your arrival at Snöklut, even more so carrying such a precious cargo." The other answered in the same tone, his respect radiating from every pore of his body. They approached Luffy, Sanji, and Chopper, but only to lean back on the crate they were hiding.

"This island was one of the most battered since Whitebeard's death to two years, everyone can deny it but the man really could command respect among the other pirates. "The Marine who had spoken first who answered. Sanji saw Luffy absentmindedly nod. "Snöklut was under his protection and since he died, being so close to the beginning of the new world, many newcomers were going to create chaos until this new base was created and Arata-san was assigned to her.

Sanji could not help but think with anger and disgust that it was necessary for the man to die for the damned marines to do something to help the next. He saw that the second man was about to respond when the third person appeared.

"What are you doing sitting there?" The captain will not be happy to see you two idiots were relaxing. The third voice seemed strong and determined, it must be someone of a higher rank than the other two. They soon apologized and ran out of the way. It was the perfect time for them to continue.

Arriving in the pantry was like paradise, Luffy's drool fell from his chin to the floor and Sanji would usually find it disgusting and inelegant, but since the boy had not had a decent meal in a long time, he did not care, and even laughed lightly.

They had no trouble getting there, there were only two crewmen passing by, unconcerned, and they just waited for them to get out of sight before they invaded the place. There was everything there, even a refrigerator where the meat was, which Sanji began to choose carefully. He would not take everything for his captain, of course not ...

"You can eat while I get things ..." Sanji said but it was practically useless since he was already eating, Luffy attacking the dried meat, the almost fresh fruit being practically inhaled quickly, Chopper not far behind him attacked the vegetables, the two almost started fighting over a can of sardines and Sanji sighed.

They took a lot, emptied virtually the entire pantry, each of the three with a large bag of food in the back, since their strength was a little refreshed, it became much easier to walk and become alert, but it was still worrying, they did not they really knew how long they had been there, the mist that Nami created should already be dissipating, and the moment of escape now was crucial.

They then followed one after another, Sanji in the lead with Chopper behind him and Luffy at the end, taking care of the rear. As they thought, the fog was much clearer now, making them more visible to the Marines who were now well around them, pointed guns and drawn swords. Chopper screamed in terror, and Sanji quietly lit his cigarette, then pulled some of the soothing nicotine into his lungs and expelled the smoke from between his lips.

"Looks like we got caught." He said matter-of-factly. Luffy replied.

"It seems so."

"Judging by the lack of sound, it seems we were the first." Sanji breathed a little more smoke.

"Yes. That's a problem ... Nami will fight with us." Luffy replied with a shudder and Sanji gained a passionate look on his face. Chopper looked at them torn between disbelief and indignation.

"You idiots, no-"

"THE TANUKI SPOKE !" Most of the Marines shouted and Chopper let his blood rise to his head as he shouted back with shark teeth.

"I'M A REINDEER!"

"HE REPLIED!" The Marines screamed in terror and Chopper could only get angry with the damned men while Luffy had his biggest moment of the day, laughing hysterically at the situation. Sanji just stared at everything bored. He had nothing more to fear, Luffy was recovered, if only a little, and he no longer had to worry about the hungry boy falling hard on the deck, Chopper was there, too, after all. What were guns for a rubber man and swords for someone who has a hull as hard as steel. Besides, he was still there.

"Give away, pirates!"

"Do you think we're going to do this just because you asked?" Sanji asked, smiling almost evilly, ready to start the attack, but that was when he heard. A single shot, too far away to be on the ship they were, but close enough for the crew to hear it too.

"What was this?"

"The den den mushi is playing like crazy!" One of the Marines shouted, running to the crowd around them.

"Oi!" A Marine called farther, drawing the attention of the others. "The captain said one of the straw hats was spotted on the other ship! From the information given is the pirate hunter Roronoa Zoro!

"That idiot ..." Sanji mentally cursed the swordsman's inability to go unnoticed. He thought of Nami, the woman was with him! His first instinct was to want to protect her, but he could not leave Luffy and Chopper alone, not as weak as they were to protect themselves.

"Shishishishi Zoro must have gotten lost on the ship." Luffy commented and it was not a bad guess what should have happened, the idiot still lost in Sunny sometimes, imagine in a ship so unknown.

"That's not all bad, we can take advantage of the distraction of others to leave." Sanji suggested paying no more attention to the Marines' agitation, nor noticing as he tied his food bag more tightly, the captain appeared to command all the users of the devil's fruit to leave the deck.

"Luffy?" Chopper called, and Luffy turned to the little doctor, frowning earnestly as he fell on the deck. "I do not feel very well..."

That was enough to get Sanji's attention too, and the cook soon turned to Chopper just in time to see the reindeer close his eyes and fall unconscious on the floor. Luffy's mouth dropped with fear and disbelief, calling out to the doctor with concern as his own knees came to his side.

Luffy's spine shuddered as something strange in the air made his body become more and more numb as if he began to be gradually exposed to the sea, and without a second thought he wrapped one of his arms around the little reindeer and Sanji, ignored the protests of the cook jumping as high as he could to push his friends away from the seemingly toxic air. His first thought was poison, but it should not be possible, not with his great resistance to it, so why did he feel as bad as Chopper?

His thoughts were interrupted by the new sound of a gun and Luffy cursed softly for forgetting that they had been surrounded, turning their backs just in time to avoid the shot of picking up Sanji, it was okay, he was rubbery after all. The bullet hit his shoulder but did not come back.

For a moment he was confused, and then the pain hit him and he was falling, not just falling down as carrying Sanji and Chopper next to him, and the first thing he thought was that that pain was familiar, he felt it before when he faced Z on that volcano island and the man managed to pierce it with that kairouseki bullet, it was the same pain.

 _"Ah, so this is it ..."_

Luffy hit the deck with a grunt, it should not hurt, his body was made of rubber for the love of God! But it hurt when his head hit the deck and for a moment everything got even fogged up. Releasing Sanji, he pulled Chopper to his chest as he tried to stand up, the reindeer was completely unconscious, and Luffy could feel that he was not too far from it either by the way it was difficult to breathe, his lungs seemed to be closing, or rather, being filled with water. Without thinking too much, Luffy removed his hat from his back and pressed Chopper's face, hoping it would be at least a little easier for the doctor to breathe without the venom in the air.

Trying to turn around, he waited to search for Sanji, expecting the cook to be as ill as he and Chopper, surprised to see him fighting normally behind him, jumping from side to side and kicking any Marine that tried to approach them. He noticed that his mouth was moving, but he could not understand what he was saying, and he could not actually hear any sound, just an annoying buzzing in his ears.

He tried to stand still, he could not stand there while Sanji fought alone with how many marines he still had while still protecting them, yet the sensation that that bullet, next to the poisoned air around him was as if he were in the bottom of the sea, and sinking more and more; with that he did not hear the second or third shot in his direction, but he felt the blinding pain in his thigh and belly, falling back and hoping that the cry echoed in his ears was not the same as he had given by the pain of the bullets of kairouseki in his body.

His hearing seemed to come back slowly as the pain grew, and he could hear Sanji calling out for him, the Marines shouting at him, his horrible, noisy breathing, and even the sound of his heart pounding against his aching chest.

"You look like you're no longer invincible with bullets, Luffy straw hat ..." A man spoke directly in front of him, and Luffy struggled to get up and see who was talking to him. "I can not believe my luck ..."

In a moment he saw the Man point the gun at him and he tried to command his legs to move, but it was impossible, he could barely keep his eyes open, the more he ran away from that shot, yet he did not back down, did not close or look away, daring the man to shoot, clenching his fists and concentrating all his energy on that next punch, hoping he had enough strength to at least punch him out of the ship, however soon he saw the black, heard the sound of new shots, and it took him a few seconds to notice that nothing new in his body ached, and his horror at the situation that quickly became complicated only tripled. Sanji who had protected him, the cook facing him coughed some of the blood accumulated in his mouth, cursing the sailors as he fell to his knees in front of him.

Sanji saw the hell loosen up after falling in front of his captain, one of the bullets had just scraped his hip, but the other got through his stomach and he felt momentarily faint from the pain, closing his eyes tightly to try controlling his breath and opening them only when he felt cold and trembling fingers on his cheek, feeling his breath fail to finally look at Luffy.

He imagined that the boy would yell at him, curse him and probably beat him for being so reckless and he would accept all this, still say that he was willing to do it again if need be, what he did not expect though was pure fear and primordial thing that made his breathing already difficult to hitch.

"Sanji ..." Luffy whispered, the horror in his trembling voice making the cook's eyes widen and he tried to reply that it was not for Luffy to worry, but his mouth opened and closed and he could not say a word. "Sanji ... Sanji! SANJI! SANJIIIII!"

His whispers became louder words that shrieked into desperate cries as his free hand groped his body for the wounds, so delirious that he missed the obvious bloody hole in the cook's body.

Sanji did not understand the captain's desperation, he had already received worse things, right? He was relatively well, he could get through this easily if they could get out of there, so why did Luffy look so horrified? The situation was so strange and Luffy's reaction so ... not Luffy that for a moment he did not know what to do. He then heard the man behind him unlock his weapon and he managed to divert both of them from the shot before kicking the man's hand.

"Luffy! Calm down! I'm fine, I'll be fine, we'll be fine, just calm down." Sanji spoke seeing how it seemed to fall on deaf ears, yet he was grateful that he was not screaming anymore, but it did not seem to be because he saw that he was all right, but because he had not breathed more, opening and closing the door. mouth like a fish out of water as he pulled the air that did not seem to want to stay in his lungs.

At a glance the captain saw the man who shot them pick up the gun from the floor, annoyed at being prevented from finishing the service before, and what dominated Luffy was pure reflex when he threw his arm back and before the sailor could shoot again , threw her fist into his face with a cry of pure anger. Sanji was open-mouthed, because, _just what the hell just happened?_

He did not know too why Chopper was unconscious and Luffy so weak, either because the damn bullets suddenly worked on his captain, or because he was so angry all of a sudden, but he did not have time for it, and heavily wrapping Luffy's back with one hand and the curve of his knee with the other, he managed to carry at least two sacks of food together before kicking the air away from there, waiting for Luffy to be able to hold Chopper as he backed away from the shots fired toward him with some difficulty but finally emerging from the sight of the accursed Marines he could relax a little more, looking down and seeing Luffy's eyes glazed over him, breathing hard as his eyelids closed slowly, but he still held him and Chopper firmly.

"Are you ... well, Sanji?" He asked between hard breaths and Sanji gritted his teeth in anger, because, as Luffy dared to worry about him when he was worse for wear and tear, was he himself?

"You're an idiot." Sanji replied and Luffy looked at him for a moment before smiling weakly and completely lost consciousness, his body softening in the arms of the cook. Sanji never wanted to so much as end the damned Marines and send them all to hell as he wanted at that moment.

* * *

Nami was worried, first she heard the sound of a shot, very close to make her comfortable, and then she remembered that Zoro had been lost. Has anyone managed to catch you off guard? No, it should be impossible, Zoro would not fall for a single shot, and with that in mind she continued her mission with Usopp.

The shot had served something after all, as all the sailors were heading toward the sound, easing her access to the pantry where she did not even think as she picked up whatever was nearest and stuffed in the bag, fruit, meat, cereal, Usopp got three sacks of rice on each shoulder, and Nami thanked her silently as she finished filling her bag, stopping at the sound of new shots, more distant, but only to put her anxiety ever more on the edge. And then, with the big sack of food on her back, she prepared to leave, and that's when hell broke loose in the Galleon to her right, where Sanji, Luffy, and Chopper were supposed to be.

Biting her lips and trying to push her worry into the back of her mind, she followed to the edge of the ship with the marksman behind her.

"I'm going to make a boat and you paddle to Sunny, I'll find Zoro and say we've done what we had to do to get out of this place." Usopp said seriously and that was when Nami realized the gravity of the situation they were in. Because if she were to think hard, Usopp grew in mind and muscle, but she was still the same fearful boy she remembered, always leaving the most frightening situations - in her opinion - to the "monster trio", showing her real strength when the situation worsened, usually when one of them was in danger.

"It's all right." Nami nodded uncontrollably, seeing Usopp throw one of her pop green in the water into a banana-shaped boat, then another against the hull of the ship, it stretched like vines to the top, which would help her down . "Be careful, Usopp."

"Who do you think you're talking to? I am the great warrior of the sea Usopp-sama! He grinned and slammed his palm into hers, Nami smiled back and walked away, throwing first the sacks of rice in the boat before descending the vine with the rest of the food.

Usopp turned away, his legs trembling with fear but the gun stuck in his hand he cursed his swordsman before running to find him.

* * *

Robin felt slightly sick and tired, knew the reason was the strange smell that was beginning to enter the ship, the feeling was familiar, like the direct contact with kairouseki or when it fell into the sea, spreading rapidly in her body the more she breathed it.

Without thinking much of it, she tore the sleeve from her blouse, tying it in her mouth and nose to try to filter the air, finding she could breathe much better like that, but still, how much she had already breathed seemed to numb her body enough to let The weak one.

"Robin-san? Are you alright?" Brook asked, concern evident in his voice as his bony hands helped the woman to her feet.

"Do not you smell that, Brook? Does not it affect you?" She asked really surprised, if that was something specifically for users of the fruit of the devil, the musician should be affected too, right?

"Oh, I do not have a nose to smell Yohohoho ..." He laughed softly and Robin thought with a smile that that made real sense, if Brook did not breathe, it was not because he was affected by that air.

"We have to leave, we have enough food for another one or two weeks at least, and if the others have, we can survive the month without problems until we find an island." She spoke pulling in her sack of food while Brook pulled another.

Taking a deep breath, knowing that outside the air would probably be much more polluted, she held her breath as she ran to the deck, creating wings on her back with her power as Brook jumped into the water, hurrying back to the ship. And it was only when she was already high up in the air that she heard, the heart-breaking call made her pant and momentarily lose control of her powers as she fell toward Sunny, her captain's frenzied calls for the cook echoing in his mind, not knowing that she was the only one who had heard him.

* * *

Zoro stopped in the middle of his attack as he heard Luffy, a shiver running from head to toe as he imagined what might be happening to his captain and the damned cook, the only time he heard such a desperate tone in Luffy's voice was when he ordered that all separated and fled in the Sabaody archipelago, he never liked that tone.

His first instinct was to turn and run toward where his captain's voice came from, but as he turned on the first bend a headache made him stagger back, glaring at one who had dared to cross his path while he was ready to go help Luffy, surprised to see his sniper there.

"Usopp!"

"Just destroy that damn ship! Cut in half or in pieces I don't care ..."

"Upsop ..." Zoro called in a bit surprised to see the tears not spilled in the boy's eyes, immediately understanding why he was like this. "You heard him."

"Of course I did! But I did not want to, I did not ever want to hear Luffy calling us like this again, it's like we came back to that day in Sabaody ..."

"We can find out what happened next, we have to go back to Sunny." Zoro was a little quieter to find someone he knew, but his heart was still beating fast and he did not know if he felt relieved or even more worried that Luffy stopped screaming for the cook.

"You're going the wrong way, you idiot ..." Usopp sighed, gripping the swordsman's sleeve as he pulled him in the right direction and jumped into the sea, swimming the rest of the way to the ship, seeing Franky soon the ladder to rise, his expression worried leaving his nerves even more the flower of the skin.

"You're the last, let's leave this damn place." Franky spoke darkly as he helped them on the deck and then ran to the helm. Stopping for a moment to breathe, Usopp dropped to her knees in the grass, listening to Nami shout orders as Brook tightly tied the sails, Zoro soon running to help him past the archaeologist who sat weakly against the main mast, his nose and lips covered by a piece of cloth.

Usopp frowning at the unusual smell of iron on the grass decided at last to open his eyes, only to be startled to see all the red staining the floor and his hands, wondering what the hell had happened, seeing Nami running ahead of him barking orders before entering the infirmary and Franky finally turned on the coup de burst, quickly taking them out of that damn place.


	2. When The Cook Broke

Hi guys!

I forgot to talk in the last chapter, so, **this fanfic will not have any couple** , they're just a **family** , a strange family, but a family. So I'm sorry if you expect any kind of couple to happen in the course of the story, but it will not happen.

So! This is the second chapter already and I'm SO surprised to see it as well received, me being a new writer and everything.

You made me a very happy person!

Anyway, guys, I do not have a beta reader, and English is not my native language, so inevitably there may be some mistakes and I'm very sorry for that but it's not something I can totally control ... if anyone wants be a beta of this story, send me a PM and let's talk! I would greatly appreciate it :)

Now without further delay, be free to read!

* * *

 **When The Cook Broke**

Usopp saw Zoro being the next to go to the infirmary behind Nami and frowned a little annoyed, it was not time for others' concern to end up choking Chopper in his treatment if someone was injured, many people inside that little infirmary would only complicate the whole situation.

He also registered, Brook approaching Robin to help her up, slowly leading her towards the women's room so she could rest, not coming in for respect, wishing the woman good rest before she left and Usopp more once she did not understand, if she did not feel well, she should go to Chopper, right? But he did not say anything as he made his way to the cyborg, watching as his hands were tense as he held the helm, his broad chest also filthy with blood made the marksman shrink slightly.

"Franky ... What happened? Why are they all in the infirmary? They'll end up choking Chopper like that, right? "He asked almost shyly, watching as the cyborg seemed to get even harder in his place, if he did not know it, he knew that Franky could end up breaking the helm of so much force he was doing to hold it, but he knew well that Franky would never intentionally hurt Sunny.

"Brook came first with some of the food and I thought everything would be fine, but then Robin-sis fell from the sky ..."

* * *

Franky was distracted, pulling the musician to the ship when he saw something falling from the sky, too familiar to be an enemy attack, and staring wide in surprise and fear he rushed to catch the frail woman before she fell on the deck, watching as she seemed weak and letting her sit gently against the mast, turning back to Sunny's side and seeing Brook help Nami in, was when something else came from the sky, bigger and more threatening, but still familiar. When two large packages began to fall with speed on the deck he almost thought it was an enemy attack before realizing that the packs were the same as the bags Robin, Nami and Brook had swallowed.

"What the hell ...?" Franky barely had time to curse when something heavy fell directly on his chest, not knocking him to the ground for very little and by pure reflex he grabbed whatever had fallen into his arms, his eyes widening at first realizing what he had held, and then with all the red that should not cover both his captain's body and the fur of the little doctor the way he did.

"We don't have time ... Luffy needs ... To be treated ..." Sanji spoke between breaths, his eyes glazed, his forehead wet with sweat and his body trembling, he couldn't tell whether it was fear or pain, but judging his wild, imploring gaze, could be both.

"You also need a doctor bro, what happened to ours?" He asked, gently lowering the cook on the grass, trying to get Luffy out of Sanji's frenzied grip that seemed to be finding it safe, but finally gave in and Franky was able to pull the rubber boy from the cook's arms and lay him gently on the deck.

"It had a strange gas on the ship ... it did not affect me, but ... it made Chopper faint and left ... Luffy weak ... Damn Marines ..." Sanji continued to curse the Marines faintly, thinking how they dared to leave Luffy so vulnerable, it was unforgivable, that look should not be on his captain's face.

"We have to get them to the infirmary," Nami said taking the reins, swallowing hard and not letting their emotions speak louder. They couldn't relax yet, they were surrounded by enemy ships, it was only a matter of time before them "But we're not going to be able to treat you now, we have to get out of here fast, we don't know what that gas you're talking about, but it's dangerous enough to let go if it can even affect Luffy who is poison resistant."

"I understand ... Nami-san ..." Sanji tried to smile to reassure her, but was deformed by the pain he was feeling from the hole in his belly, he could barely believe that the damn bullet really went through his stomach, the worse it was that no matter how hard he tried to stall from the front, it still leaked from behind. The loss of blood was reaching levels where even looking a meter ahead was already impossible so blurred was his vision.

Franky took the cook as Brook lifted his captain as gently as he could in his bony arms, sadly seeing his wounds, his own burning desire to come back and defeat the people who did this to his friends being shaken only by the will he had to help them to survive and get through it, revenge was never the answer.

Sanji insisted that they leave him in the chair, since he had only one bed in the infirmary and he would not occupy it when Luffy was in much worse shape than he, holding a towel in his belly to stanch the bleeding while Brook put others to Luffy, knowing where to put it with all that blood.

"I have it, go help others get us out of here ..." Sanji said weakly, holding a towel on Luffy's back and using his own body to push, to the stomach and thigh, pressing his belly with the free hand and cursing softly for how quickly the towel soaked with blood. "How much more can he still lose?"

* * *

"After Sanji-bro began to press on Luffy's wound I left, and then you and Zoro-bro were begging for the ladder." Franky finished counting, glancing at the sniper and seeing how he shook in his place, white as a paper, but her eyes showed pure and unbridled rage.

"Justice my ass ... The Marines are worse than the pirates ..." Usopp muttered, turning his back on the carpenter and going to the infirmary, pausing at the door not knowing whether to enter or not, listening to the frenetic conversation of the inside as he held out a trembling hand to the doorknob.

"Oi, Nami! Sanji just fainted!"

"Of course he passed out! He lost a lot of blood and you wore it without an anesthesia!"

"How would I know he needed this damn woman ?! I'm not a doctor!"

"Me neither!" Nami spoke in a frenzy. "Argh! Leave him there for now, Luffy needs a blood transfusion, I remember how Chopper did this in Ryugu Kingdom. Look in the refrigerator for an F-type! Hey-"

"Nami, he's not breathing… your heart stopped! Damn Luffy! If you die on me now I swear I'm going to hell to hunt you down and kill you!"

"Keep doing CPR Zoro! I'll put him in the oxygen!" Usopp felt the tears coming down his cheek and he raised his hand quickly to dry them, it was not the time to cry, he had to go in there and try to help in any way he could, but the fear of seeing what was happening inside prevented his hand turning the knob and the legs to take any step forward, it was then that the door opened.

"Usopp! Good hour, get Sanji-kun and take him to your room, he need to get some rest." The redhead used to say entering the room and pulling the cook to the door.

"B-but Luffy…?"

"Me and Zoro can take care of Luffy until Chopper wakes up, don't worry, stay with Sanji." She said at last and slammed the door again when she saw that the sniper had Sanji fastened securely in his arms.

"Nami, There's only one F-type!"

"It'll have to serve! Chopper still hasn't time to refuel!"

Usopp turned away, pushing the half-naked cook on his shoulder and walking carefully into the boys room. He couldn't do much to help when it came to injuries, but that, at least, he could do because he would never leave a nakama alone.

It was late at night when Robin felt strong enough to get out of bed and go to the deck to look for her companions, only the lights in the crow's nest were lit and she was too disoriented to know who took the turn today. Looking for a little more she saw lights in the kitchen too, deciding to go there knowing it was the most likely place to find the others.

Her memories were a mess, she remembered stealing food from a marine galleon, and then feeling very weak, she heard someone shouting, no… It was Luffy, Luffy was screaming for someone and then she couldn't organize herself anymore enough to know exactly what had happened.

All eyes on the kitchen turned to her as she walked through the door, Nami behind the counter seemed to prepare a coffee for the other presents, only Franky, Brook and Usopp.

"It seems our _super_ archeologist is feeling better!" Franky cheered, but Robin could tell easily that his tone wasn't as lively as usual.

"I'm better, thank you Franky." She smiled gently and saw how a bit of the weather eased. Still, she could see in Usopp's features that something was wrong. "Were are the others?"

"Chopper, Luffy and Zoro are in the infirmary, Sanji is on the lookout, that little shit…" Nami murmured, sitting wearily at the table, joining the others.

"What happened?" She asked seriously, sitting down next to her friend and pouring herself some coffee, was by no means any better than Sanji's, but it was still good and she would not refuse some sips of coffee stayed all day without.

"Something happened between Sanji and Luffy… but Sanji doesn't want to tell me" Nami said disgustedly, she never imagined that the cook would soon be declining something for her. He didn't even fall under his charm! "They come back very hurt, Luffy and Chopper are still unconscious…"

* * *

"Zoro, I'm going to need help caring Luffy and Sanji-kun!" Nami screamed as she ran to the infirmary, she didn't even have to ask or give any orders, the swordsman would go anyway she wouldn't.

"Where's Chopper?" He asked worriedly, standing in the front of the infirmary door with Nami in front of him.

"He's also unconscious, fast!" It was all she had to say to the first mate, swallowing hard as she opened the door and felt her blood freeze at the sight inside.

Sanji sitting in Chopper's chair leaned against the bed, pressing Luffy's stomach lightly with a towel soaked with blood, his hand on his own stomach was wet and the dripping red on the floor at intervals, shit, they had already lost a lot of blood , he just hoped he had a damn cook's replacement bag in the doctor's little refrigerator, he knew that because of Sanji's nasal bleeding outbursts, Chopper always kept more of him.

Sanji at the sound of the door stared at the swordsman, and if Zoro was not seeing for himself he would not believe the fear he was seeing in that ocean blue iris, or the request for help implicit in his pale face. Now _this_ he couldn't let go. Sanji _never_ asked for help, not for him at least, and that look he begged for help should not be addressed soon to him, not to Sanji of all people.

"I swear, if you don't save him ... I'll kill you _and_ him when I get better ... shit marimo." Sanji threatened weakly, but Zoro knew they were empty words, threats grounded by a desperate man, and the immediate one felt his blood boil at the thought of what had made his rival look so damn pathetic. Whoever it was would pay.

The intense gaze between the cook and the swordsman disintegrated as Nami approached with a new towel to replace that soaked in Luffy's belly, gently taking Sanji's hand from there and handing him a new one as well, but Sanji had no more strength to try to stop the bleeding. Nami bit her lip.

"We're going to do everything we can for you three, Sanji-kun. Zoro wash your hands and pick up the sewing material next to wet and antiseptic towels in the closet by your side and clean Sanji-kun's wounds before sewing that hole in his belly, Sanji-kun takes off his blouse, Zoro will help you. " Sanji was ready to protest, thinking that the marimo would do the same, but was surprised to see him nod and do exactly what the navigator ordered, deciding to cooperate too, releasing as fast as his trembling hands could, the buttons of his social blouse. "What happened?"

"The damned marines ... They dropped some gas on the deck ... Chopper fainted and Luffy tried ..." Sanji spat curses feeling the antiseptic make contact with the wound and bit his tongue so as not to curse the whole next generation of Zoro: "He tried to get us out of there ... but a Marine shot him with ... those fucking Kairouseki bullets ..." Sanji spoke breathlessly, it was becoming difficult to focus on anything, his body was numb and he barely felt the swordsman wiping the blood on his belly. "You have to get the bullets ... They still ... Ah, son of a bitch! Shit marimo! let me know when to sew the people!"

"Keep quiet Sanji! Fucking cook! I don't want to do this as much as you do, but either it's or bleed to death, your choice." Just to have the swordsman call him by name was enough for Sanji to shut his mouth but only the visible concern in his voice made him keep it closed, he knew he and Zoro had this relationship of contempt and hatred, but they were still nakamas, they were still a family, and they believed in each other and cared for each other, but it was still strange to see him demonstrate it so blatantly.

Sanji thought it was not just his captain who had changed some attitudes in the past two years, Zoro was also acting more responsible, as a true and reliable mate. Sanji bit his lips, holding the pain inside as he felt the needle come in and out of his skin. His vision was starting to darken, he had to warn Nami.

"Nami-san ... The bullet ... You have to take out ... Bullet Luffy ... Kairou ... Seki ..." It was getting harder to form coherent words, even more so to be aware now that he knew things would improve and Luffy would be out of danger, in addition, Zoro was now sewing the hole in his back and he could no longer contain the pain, letting out short sore sighs as it became increasingly difficult to keep his eyes open by the loss of blood.

"I know, Sanji-kun, thank you. I'm working on it now." Nami was talking about finishing Chopper next to Luffy, taking advantage of the fact that the teenager was already shirtless so he could finish cleaning all the blood and carefully pulling the bullet with tweezers. Her hands were shaking, and her eyes were a little blurred with tears, but she had to be strong if she wanted to save Luffy now, her captain depended on her, and she would not disappoint him.

The first bullet fell on the tray and Nami was already exhausted, two were still missing and she wanted to cry, not believing that Chopper could do it so calmly and so professionally even when it was one of them dying in their small hooves. Nami made a mental note to tell the little doctor how amazing he was when he woke up.

Trying to calm down as much as possible Nami with her hands still a little shivering sewed the little hole there, putting on a bandage hoping it would be enough to finish staunching the blood before moving on to the next on Luffy's thigh.

"Zoro, help me get the rest of Luffy's clothes, this way I can't get that bullet." Nami asked tremulously, but not out of shame, but out of fear, Luffy had already lost a lot of blood, and she was still in the second bullet, it couldn't be any longer.

"You don't want me to do this? Just tell me what to do-"

"No, I don't care, I spent two months in a little boat with you, two idiots besides all this time in Going Merry and Sunny, do you think I have not seen them naked at least once? take his goddamn clothes off and I'll finish this. " Nami spoke earnestly and Zoro nodded with a new respect for the navigator, not much, but enough to obey her without questioning anymore. He would apologize to Luffy afterwards for this, but he knew the captain would not mind them doing it, it was to save his life after all.

After the swordsman's help and a little embarrassment - she would never admit it - Nami was able to take the second bullet that was too close to her crotch without much trouble, dressing there too, and wrapped the entire place with bandages before , with Zoro helping her again, turning Luffy on his back. The last bullet was so deep that it had snaked right under her collarbone and Nami cursed softly for not having the position to pull it.

"I can't ..." she murmured tearfully, a single tear descending on either side of her face, catching the swordsman's attention that ended the dressing and the semi-conscious cook.

"You need to, we don't have Chopper, Robin is disabled too, and you're the only one who has a clue what you're doing. Swallow the cry and save our captain. " Zoro spoke harshly but with a confidence and hope in the navigator she couldn't bring herself to deny again, wiping her eyes with her forearms and taking a deep breath she thought of what to do.

"Zoro, I need you to make a neat cut here." Nami pointed from where the bullet hole was a couple of inches above him, handing the scalpel into his hand. "In this position I can't get the bullet so I need to create one. I ... I can't do this, but I know you can. "

Zoro looked nervously at the navigator and then at the unconscious captain at the table, the scalpel in his hand shuddered slightly but he took a deep breath and concentrated, it was to help Luffy, he was not hurting him, it was not on purpose, he would be fine , and with clean hands and avoiding any nervousness he cut the meat as far as Nami had asked, seeing the woman smile shakily at him and take it from where he had stopped while Zoro walked away with sweat covering his forehead and shaking hands. He thought he would never be a doctor, even an improvised one like now, and then he turned to his real patient, seeing as Sanji was lying in his chair, soft limbs, eyes closed and loose mouth, he had completely lost consciousness.

"Oi, Nami! Sanji just fainted!" Zoro spoke with some desperation, the damn cook needed a transfusion, right? He had literally created a small pool of blood on the floor just minutes away.

"Of course he passed out! He lost a lot of blood and you wore it without an anesthesia." Nami spoke absently, finishing cleaning the injured area after finally getting the last bullet.

"How would I know he needed this damn woman ?! I'm not a doctor!" Zoro spoke so worried and angry that if the moment was another she would laugh and still mock him a little, but she was too nervous and scared to pay attention to this, turning to him for a moment to scream.

"Neither am I!" Nami screamed in frenzy. "Argh! Leave him there for now, Luffy needs a blood transfusion, I remember how Chopper did it in Ryugu kingdom. Look in the refrigerator for an F-type bag!" Nami spoke at last closing the last hole in her captain's body, pressing the gauze gently and trying to staunch what was left of the blood that slowly stopped coming out. She looked at Zoro when he did not move. "Hey-"

"Nami he is not breathing ..." Nami had to move away when Zoro without warning turned Luffy head on and bent down to try to listen to his heart, widening his one eye with fear as he moved away and began to press Luffy's chest , blowing air into his mouth soon after. "Damn Luffy! If you die on me now I swear I'm going to hell to hunt you down and kill you!"

"Keep doing CPR Zoro, I'll put him in oxygen." Nami dropped the blood-soaked gauze to feel her pulse, weak, very weak.

It was after a minute or a bit more, that seemed to last for hours, that Luffy fought for air, Zoro turning his head aside so he would not choke on the blood that came out, stopping all his movements to feel the pulse of Luffy, was weak, but better than before. The scare passing Zoro grimaced, he thanked Luffy for being rubber, or he would have inadvertently broken some ribs there in their desperation. Taking a deep breath he took a sheet to cover his captain, he did not know if Luffy would feel embarrassed being in all his glory that way, but it was disconcerting with Nami in the same room with them.

"Chopper is also having a hard time breathing ... his pulse is also a little weak," Zoro warned, watching Nami nod in acknowledgment.

Nami looked in the closet for the cylinders she would need to put both boys in oxygen, the well-kept, well-kept masks were in a drawer and she turned it all on before putting the mask on the face of her captain and doctor, watching as they slowly returned to breathe better, weak and erratic, but breathing. Nami hoped they would not need it for long, it was disturbing to see her friends that way, even more so now after meeting after so long, she just wanted to spend time with her captain and companions, all happy and healthy, but one thing after another began to prevent them from such, and now they were in that situation.

"I saw Chopper using this in Luffy after the transfusion after the fight with Hody ... He did not use it for long, just enough to not feel so tired after all the blood loss, but it was still scary, as it is now . " Nami remarked absently, she did not think Luffy had already lost so much blood to the point that he needed more, except, perhaps, in Alabasta where Crocodile actually impaled him on the chest with the hook in his hand. It was gloomy days those of Luffy's recovery and Chopper had a lot of work in the days until Luffy woke up. Remembering this made her smile, Luffy had already been through it, there was no way he couldn't get out of it now.

"They'll be fine," she said confidently, looking at Zoro and watching the swordsman immediately relax under her confirmation. "Luffy will not fall like this, not after everything we've been through."

* * *

"Usopp took Sanji from the infirmary after that, I put Luffy in the blood and serum, then I also put Sanji-kun, and then we waited." Nami finished, folding her arms across the table and lowering her head to them, hiding her face there.

"Sanji stood up a few hours and said he was going to be watching, Zoro is still in the infirmary with an eye on Chopper and Luffy, and we are here ... not knowing what really happened." Usopp mumbled, elbows on the table and his face hidden in his hands. Robin wanted to say something and try to take all the hold of her friends' shoulders, but she herself felt down now that she knew what had happened, her captain was injured and her doctor couldn't treat him because he was also unconscious, for those who barely knew what they were doing. Nami looked ready to faint so tired, but she did not do it out of concern.

It was at that moment that Zoro decided to enter the kitchen, calm as whenever the lives of his friends were not being threatened, but it was visible how a small weight seemed to have left his back.

"Chopper is awake."

* * *

Chopper felt tired, exhausted if he was to describe his condition better, his chest aching, as if his lungs had been compressed and then expanded again beyond the limit several times. His vision was blurry and his head looked like it was going to explode, he could barely move a hull but he still did, he needed to know why he felt so bad, he did not remember what happened after they boarded the navy ship and was worried, someone could be hurt, someone could need your help, he couldn't get rested right now.

"Chopper?" He knew that voice, it was familiar, he was worried, demanding and stern, but with subtle kindness, and he called him, he answered, or he thought he answered, his voice kept ringing.

"Zoro? ..." His voice was weak and hoarse and it hurt to speak too but finally he managed to speak, yet he needed to drink some water.

"Yes, how do you feel? Do you think you can get up?" the Swordsman asked approaching the doctor and helping him sit down when he saw the fight he was having trying to do it himself.

"Not very well ... What ... What happened?" He asked, blinking his eyes a few more times trying to clear them, tried to take a hoof to his muzzle, rub his face might help, but was stopped by whatever it was attached to it. "What...?"

"You couldn't breathe alone, so Nami put it to help you." Zoro explained vaguely, he did not know if it was safe to take, did not want to see the little reindeer suffocating again.

"Oh ..." That was all he could say, without really knowing what had caused it, it was impossible to get a complete diagnosis in his state. "I remember smelling ... it was a little familiar, but it made me very weak, and my chest ached ..."

"How do you feel now?"

"Still weak, and it still hurts, but not as much as before." His strength slowly returned and his vision brightened after the minutes, and when he felt well enough to take off the mask he breathed in the fresh air, choking on the strong scent of blood. "Who's hurt? I smell blood."

He asked, looking around, discovering that he was in the infirmary, and then lying there in bed with an oxygen mask helping him to breathe, just as he had been before, his captain.

"Luffy ..."

"He's getting better, I think. At least he's not as pale as before, but he's still breathing better with the extra oxygen, he's lost a lot of blood and we couldn't replace it all because there was just one more of his kind of blood bag." Zoro explained helping the reindeer to stand on the improvised bed to look at Luffy better.

"What happened?"

Zoro explained everything he knew to the reindeer and Chopper listened intently, especially when he said something about Luffy's condition, noting what he could do to help now that they had done everything, he needed to cleanse the wounds again and change the bandages, see if any were infected and treat quickly before it became more complicated, measure the temperature and pressure, change the serum that was already ending and keep an eye on it to see if its condition deteriorated. Thinking about all this made his head hurt a little more.

"Luffy's fine for now, Chopper, you, on the other hand, need to rest."

"But Luffy ... Zoro, I can't, I'm your doctor ..."

"Which is also hurt, Luffy is strong, he will be fine."

"Zoro, you don't understand ... I am your _doctor_ , I _need_ to take care of him." Chopper spoke earnestly, a determination in his words that he had not yet seen in the little doctor, a conviction so strong that it did not give rise to complaints. Zoro almost gave in.

"Chopper, how would you take care of him being sick too? It's okay, Luffy is strong, you more than anyone else should know this, he can take a few more hours to you rest. We can't sail without a real competent doctor on this ship. "Zoro appealed to the compliment, he couldn't see because of all the hair, but he knew Chopper blushed at his words.

"You call me a competent doctor does not make me happy, you bastard ..." Chopper murmured, hiding his face in the hoofs as he did not have the strength to dance with joy, not seeing the little victorious smile of the mate.

* * *

"He's resting now, but he's much better and asked you to come see him, Nami, said he needed you to do some things with Luffy, he'll explain when you get there." Zoro spoke as he sat down beside the archaeologist at the same time that the navigator, on the other side, got up and left the kitchen in a hurry.

"Zoro-bro, and Luffy?"

"Same ..." It was enough to let everyone's spirit down again. Usopp, trembling, slammed his hands on the table and left the kitchen then he couldn't handle all this sad mood, he was going to rip Sanji out of that observation post even if he was kicking.

When Sanji entered the kitchen a little flustered and locked his eyes with Robin's, he smiled faintly, sighing relieved and pulling a cigarette to his mouth, lining it up with the lighter before going behind the counter, he still had to catalog everything. who brought in supplies and see what they could prepare for dinner, even if it was past 3 o'clock in the morning.

Franky and Brook subtly rose to leave, and Robin soon followed, leaving only the mate and the cook in the kitchen. Zoro had his arms crossed in front of his chest, his one eye following the hawk-like blonde in the kitchen, his intentions quite explicit, and the longer he spent in that situation, the more he seemed to make Sanji anxious.

"If you're not going to do anything then get out of here! Damn marimo ... Shit swordsman ... "He muttered irritably at the last parts, turning his back to Zoro who did not move a muscle from where he was, he knew that the cook was just annoyed at the situation, not having anyone else to do it; he did not want to say half of what he said.

"Oi."

"What you want?"

"A drink."

"Lift up your lazy ass and get yourself then." Sanji snarled, but nevertheless carefully selected the ingredients he would use for dinner, seeing from the corner of his eye the swordsman did exactly as he ordered, opening the refrigerator and looking for a moment he sighed and closed it. "What is it now?"

"I can not find the damn drink." Zoro's sullen, almost childish tone almost made Sanji laugh, as someone of that size, with that look, could be a softie child sometimes he couldn't figure out. But Sanji was not in a good mood.

"It's practically in your face, you idiot!" Sanji fumed, stamping his feet to the refrigerator and taking the drink from the door before handing Zoro roughly. "Are you blind?"

"Partly, yes." Zoro shrugged and Sanji noticed now, looking better at the immediate, what he had said. Zoro was indeed one-eyed at last and had more difficulty locating things on his left side if it was not in a fight. Sanji cursed softly, walking to the table where the others were before to sit on the chair and resting his elbows on the wood he hid his face in his hands.

"Luffy will be angry with me when he wakes up ..." Sanji muttered, it was not usually a problem to have the idiot captain upset with him, but also, he had to take into account that Luffy would only be nipped at him when he refused food only.

He did not have to look to detect the sounds Zoro made in his kitchen, his purposefully noisy walk to the sink, the cups he took from the drainer, and then his walk to the table to sit, the dragging of the chair before he sat down and the glass that was placed in front of him, the bottle placed in the middle of the table, and the voice calm and cold, but with an unusual softness that disarmed Sanji completely.

"What happened?"

"I've already told you what happened." Sanji growled, he did not like to feel that way, even though Zoro was putting it on like that, it was like a little trapped animal, or like a child trying to lie uselessly to his parents.

"I did not hear it," he said simply, shrugging. Sanji lifted his head to look directly at the swordsman, eye to eye, daring him to continue with that shit, in the end to be himself giving up looking away and sighing resignedly he accepted that he would not get away with this easily.

"Like I said, they released some kind of strange gas on the deck that made Luffy weak and Chopper unconscious. Luffy tried to get us out of there, but that fucking son of a bitch shot him with kairouseki, when things got out of hand I picked them up and went back to the ship, end. "

Sanji recounted the story still unable to face the swordsman, feeling his gaze burning on his face, seeing from the corners of his eyes as his posture had grown more rigid, his arms crossed had veined veins and brows wrinkled. He couldn't keep his gaze, Sanji _knew_ that Zoro _knew_ he was lying.

"No, try again." Zoro spoke more severely, knocking some of the drink into his glass and drinking it in a few sips. Sanji clenched his fists, so strong that his nails almost cut through his skin, knowing that the swordsman saw over his lie did not make the situation easier to swallow.

"What? I've already counted! "Sanji fumed, clapping his hands on the table hard, demonstrating the pain that traveled all over the body to the wound in his belly with a single shudder. Zoro continued to stare, not wavering once, not blinking or looking away, his expression returning to his stoic common. Sanji shivered angrily. "What do you want from me?!"

"The truth." The answer was simple and straightforward, and only served to finish throwing Sanji away from the edge.

"Why do you think I would lie damn marimo ?! I'm telling the truth early! About the fucking gas and the damn sailor who shot Luffy, you want me to give details of how I got on the fucking ship? "Sanji screamed, gesturing with his hands in the air, pushing the chair that sat violently behind him standing up, pacing back and forth, the enervating gaze of the first companion following him wherever he went.

"I want the whole truth. You're leaving some things aside, like how you got that hole in your belly, and why Luffy called for you like you're dying when you look so good to me. "Zoro said losing his own patience, stopping to take a deep breath and compose before continuing. "Look, I just want to understand what happened, and if you don't want to tell everyone, tell me at least, whenever we try to hide things or do them alone it doesn't work."

Sanji stopped walking and thought about it, he hated to agree with Zoro, but the fucking swordsman was right about that, he remembered Nami trying to deal with Arlong herself, and Robin trying to save them alone too, in addition, Luffy. .. the shit captain that invaded an impenetrable prison and fought a war alone.

"We're all a team for a reason." Zoro finally spoke and Sanji finally relented, coming back now head down to the table, rearranging the chair he'd knocked over and then sitting back where he was before, picking up the bottle from the table to fill his own cup to his mouth.

"If I see that Marine again, I'll kill him."

* * *

When Sanji fell on the deck next to Luffy and Chopper he couldn't for a moment think about what had happened, after all his captain is bullet proof, right? There was no way any bastard could hurt him, not with a simple weapon, but then what was that blood? And why did Luffy look so disoriented?

Sanji watched him sit slowly, grunting in pain as he pulled Chopper against his chest, breathing hardly for a moment before taking his hat to the reindeer and covering his face, it was then that Sanji remembered to smell a strange smell before Luffy but apparently had no effect on him more than enough to make him lightheaded, but if he was leaving Chopper and Luffy so badly, it could be something created specifically to weaken users of the devil's fruit.

"Luffy, hey!" He screamed as he saw the Marines approaching, they had to get out of there, needed Luffy cooperating and at least a little lucid so they could get off that damn ship, but the captain seemed to give no clue what he was hearing.

Grunting in frustration, he stood up to be able to fight to defend them and create an opening to be able to pull them out, shouting at Luffy expecting some reaction, even threatening to take his flesh even when they had one, but the captain's glazed look did not even he shifted from his forehead and his already difficult breathing seemed to grow worse and worse, yet he smiled hopefully when he saw Luffy rise slowly and carefully, Sanji was almost ready to grab him and get out of there when he heard more sounds of shooting and with a sore cry Luffy returned to the ground.

"Luffy!" He called now more worried, looking from the captain to the one he had thrown, the man's smile taking away the rest of the cook's poor patience, and the smug way in which he slowly pulled the lock from his pistol, pointed without any hesitation at the heart of his captain, managed to make Sanji's legs move and yet he was too far away to stop him, but close enough to Luffy to stop that bullet from hitting him.

* * *

"That bastard was trying to kill Luffy right there, he looked at his heart, I had no way to stop him otherwise." Sanji finally revealed, getting up to erase the cigarette butt on the ashtray on the counter, just to pull another to the lips and ascend, swallowing a large amount of the soothing and toxic smoke to his lungs before expelling it. "He called me that way because he was out of his mind to see that my injury was not fatal, I think he couldn't see right ..."

Zoro was silent, his single eye still faithfully following every movement of the cook, but he no longer looked so calm, the corner of his lips vaguely curved down and brows furrowed, not as if he had internally judged him, but more as if think meticulously in what to say now.

"Spare the sermon for the shitty captain, you have no right to berate me in any way." Sanji spoke and then frowned, thinking technically the marimo had a right to reprimand him, being the immediate and all, but he did not want to hear that shit just about Zoro. He stood up when Zoro took his time to answer, lost in thought, finishing the last drink of his drink and returning to the recovered supplies, stopping when he finally heard the swashbuckler's calm, deep voice.

"Luffy's heart stopped for a minute yesterday," Zoro said, watching as the cook froze his hands, shuddering at the words. "It could have happened well sooner if you had not done anything."

"Are you _complimenting_ me?" The question itself, directed mainly at Zoro, was so wrong in his conception that he couldn't help but laugh, however nervous, turning to face the swordsman again and seeing that his expression discontent had not changed. "I did not do this to be thankful or congratulated, my captain ... my friend was in danger, I just did what I should do to protect him, and I _know_ you know what I'm talking about."

Sanji spoke implicitly leaving what he really meant. Thriller Bark gave him nightmares for a few days, especially the part where an idiot swordsman offered his head in return for all of them, as if he wanted to be saved by Zoro from all people. He stared at Zoro seriously, watching him stiffen momentarily in his position, his disgruntled expression getting even worse for a moment and if looks could kill, Sanji would be lying on the floor in a pool of his own blood now. Zoro closed his eyes and took a deep breath to calm himself, dealing with Sanji when he was literally a wounded bitch was a test of patience greater than the cook being his normal self.

"But you don't seem pleased to have done that, anyway." Zoro commented, shifting his position and pouring more liquor into his glass, he sometimes did not want to be so resistant to alcohol, maybe if he was drunk now, this conversation would be much easier. He could, however, try to get the cook drunk a little, bending a little further to knock the liquid down in the second glass as well, a subtle implication for the cook to sit down again, and in very bad taste he did, frowning his curly eyebrow and taking the glass firmly he drank it all before he spoke again.

"I don't regret it, if that's what you mean." Sanji mimicked Zoro's position, arms crossed, heel over his knee, one single eye staring at the other, waiting for the swordsman to give way at once. leave him alone, he did not want to talk about it, he did not want to remember that much less, Luffy ... That horror, his hands trembling, his tears, this was not his captain of two years ago.

Sanji remembered the war, from when he found out about it at least, he was not there with his captain, none of them were, but he particularly felt guilty about it, while Luffy was fighting a monster war, he was creeping in and just having fun discovering his "true self," and participating in a reality clash over Ace's death, and Luffy's involvement in all of it.

"I did not say that," Zoro said casually, tearing the blond from his memories, horrible memories if he were to think about it. Sanji felt tired, aching, his head seemed to want to explode and he had a nervous itching all over the body that he knew very well to be his nervousness and anxiety, he needed to smoke more; he wanted to go to Luffy, see if he was all right, but he didn't know if he could face him now without seeing the same expression of fear and anguish in his memories. He couldn't think how much damage that war had given Luffy to overthrow his unshakable captain the way he did.

Sanji was tired, he just wanted to get it over with.

"I'm not sorry, I just can not stop thinking about how he reacted when I protected him ..." He finally released, bringing a hand up to his face to cover his eyes as he lowered his head a little, his fringe preventing Zoro from to see his expression better, but he could tell from the cook's trembling lips that he was still not doing it very well. His own hard and unshakable stance, just as his stoic face dissolved into something more relaxed and gentle seeing Sanji finally break. He was silent, knowing that if he said anything now, the cook would close again.

"He was so scared and distressed, and I could understand if it was the situation, but he was like that for my sake and it did not look ... Right." Sanji continued without changing his position, his hands shaking now. "He cried and called me like he'd just lost me and I ... He should not be like this, you know ... Luffy is ... He was so cheerful and carefree all the time, spontaneous and hyperactive and a real damn confident and unwavering sun, and seeing him the way I saw it was ... scary. "

Zoro understood now what was making the cook so anxious, he had not yet seen the vulnerable side of his captain, and it was not a real surprise, Luffy had given strict orders so he would not tell anyone about it when he saw him break a day.

It was in the middle of the night, a few days after they knocked out Z's group, he was on watch and saw Luffy leave the dormitory a little hurriedly to lean on the railing next to Sunny and vomit what should be the whole meal of the day . Zoro immediately approached and did not let Luffy go until explaining what was happening, it was then that the captain finally broke. He was surprised for just a moment watching the thick tears and hearing Luffy's loud sobs, but soon understood what was happening. No one comes out of a war without deep scars.

Now here was the cook freaking out for that too, and he finally understood why Luffy did not want them to know. Now it was late, though.

"Luffy is still the same Luffy we met two years ago, with just too many things in his head right now ..." Zoro sighed, pouring more drink to both of them, he really wished he could get drunk now. "He has nightmares, a lot of them ... He does not tell everything about them, but it's from when we parted, when he went to Impel Down, when he went to Marineford, and Ace ... usually he can handle it alone, but when it's a little too much he comes to me, preferring to have someone around. "

The new subject made Sanji truly uncomfortable now, none of them had really spoken about it, and before long it was established as a taboo even Ace's name on that ship, they were afraid of what it could generate, so they never addressed the subject.

"Do you know anything else about Ace?" Sanji asked quietly and Zoro thought about it, did he know? Maybe not much more than the others, but it was something.

"Yes I know."

"It was a hell of a war ..." Sanji said, because it couldn't be anything worse than hell to leave Luffy as he is.

"It was, but Luffy is still the same, but with many scars that have not yet healed and traumas that have not been overcome." Zoro drank all the drink in his glass and stood up, leaving the bottle to the cook and slowly following to the door. "We might not be with him when he needed us two years ago, but we're here now to help him when he needs it. We will not change the past regardless of how much we regret it, but we can do better now that we are all together again. "

At the moment Zoro finally left that Sanji let himself sob, pressing his eyes hard with his palms and biting his lips to let no more sound come out. It was no time to cry, it was no time to mourn something that ever happened, no matter how guilty he felt about it. It was time to heal his captain, none of them could close their eyes to his pain anymore.

Wiping his eyes and taking a deep breath a few times he pulled out the bottle Zoro had left for him, never thinking of thanking the accursed swordsman - not in words at least - as he drank in the bottleneck and stood up when he was finally done. It did not even bother him, but the intention was worth it, and with a few steps he stepped out of his beloved kitchen. His captain needed him.


End file.
